Operation unit and electronic equipment having the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10243556-B2
Application number	US-201615296268-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 18, 2016
Priority date	Oct 20, 2015
Publication date	Mar 26, 2019
Grant date	Mar 26, 2019

Abstract

An operation unit comprises a touch panel display, a home key and a power saving key. The power saving key includes an indication portion, and a first indication portion out of the indication portion has light permeability, and a color of its surface is a dark color, and a second indication portion has no light permeability or has it hardly, which is constituted by a double-layered print. In a surface side of this second indication portion, a figure indicative of a power saving key is printed in silver ink, and in a rear side thereof, a figure indicative of the power saving key is printed in black ink. In a normal state, when a backlight is lit, a surface of the first indication portion is bright, and a surface of the second indication portion is darker than the surface of the first indication portion. On the other hand, in a power saving mode, when a light guide plate does not emit light, the surface of the first indication portion is dark, and the surface of the second indication portion is brighter than the surface of the first indication portion. Therefore, presence and location of the power saving key can be notified in a visible manner.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An operation unit, comprising:
an indication portion that includes a first indication portion having light permeability and a second indication portion laminated on the first indication portion; and
an operating portion including the indication portion, wherein
the operating portion includes a light emitter that is arranged facing a rear surface of the indication portion,
a surface of the second indication portion is made darker than brightness of a surface of the first indication portion in a case where the indication portion is illuminated by the light emitter, and
the surface of the second indication portion is brighter than the brightness of the surface of the first indication portion by the reflectance of external light on the surface of the second indication portion in a case where the indication portion is not illuminated by the light emitter.

2. The operation unit according to claim 1 , wherein a color of the first indication portion is a dark color.

3. The operation unit according to claim 1 , wherein a color of the second indication portion is a metallic color or a color that approximates to the metallic color.

4. The operation unit according to claim 3 , wherein the color of the second indication portion is silver.

5. The operation unit according to claim 1 , wherein a color of a rear surface side of the second indication portion is black.

6. The operation unit according to claim 1 , further comprising a light permeation preventing member that is provided in a rear surface side of the indication portion and prevents light irradiated by the light emitter from being permeated around the indication portion.

7. The operation unit according to claim 1 , wherein a surface of the operation unit including a surface of the indication portion includes a smooth region having a smooth surface and an uneven region having an uneven surface.

8. The operation unit according to claim 7 , wherein at least a part of the surface of the indication portion is included in the uneven region.

9. The operation unit according to claim 7 , further comprising a further operating portion that is different from the operating portion in an assigned function, wherein unevenness of the uneven region is formed outside the further operating portion in a shape of ripples centered around the further operating portion.

10. An operation unit, comprising: an indication portion; and an operating portion that includes the indication portion, wherein
a surface of the operation unit that includes a surface of the indication portion comprises a smooth region having a smooth surface and an uneven region having an uneven surface, both the smooth region and the uneven region capable of being touched by a user.

11. The operation unit according to claim 10 , wherein at least a part of the surface of the indication portion is included in the uneven area.

12. The operation unit according to claim 10 , further comprising a further operating portion that is different from the operating portion in an assigned function, wherein unevenness of the uneven area is formed outside the further operating portion in a shape of ripples centered around the further operating portion.

13. Electronic equipment, comprising the operation unit recited in the claim 1 .

14. Electronic equipment, comprising the operation unit recited in the claim 10 .

Assignees

• Sharp Kk

Inventors

• Nakamura Yasushi
• Kawata Osamu

Classifications

• H04N1/00896

  using a low-power mode, e.g. standby · CPC title

• H04N1/00411

  the display also being used for user input, e.g. touch screen · CPC title

• H04N2201/0094

  Multifunctional device, i.e. a device capable of all of reading, reproducing, copying, facsimile transception, file transception · CPC title

• G06F3/041

  Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means · CPC title

• H03K17/9622 Primary

  using a plurality of detectors, e.g. keyboard · CPC title